It is not at
all fanciful to speculate that a number of famous and early potters
journeyed along the track which is today known as Whieldons Road, Grove
Road and Duke Street.

Thomas Whieldon of
Fenton Low (or Little Fenton), Stoke-on-Trent, was probably the leading
potter of his day and he had great influence on other famous potters.

Whieldon's
home was at the bottom of what is now City Road and Whieldon Road, the
works were at Little Fenton.

Josiah
Spode I was an apprentice to Thomas Whieldon and Josiah Wedwood I
was from 1754 to 1759 in partnership with Whieldon.

Both Josiah Spode the
first
(1733-97) and Josiah Spode the
second
(1755-1827), were born in Lane
Delph and
Josiah Spode II continued to have very close connections with the Lane
Delph area and
in 1790 became a partner in a coal mining business (Fenton Park
Colliery) with other Staffordshire potters.

In 1730, Ralph Wood
was apprenticed to John Astbury, and he subsequently worked with
Thomas Whieldon at Fenton Low, there learning the manufacture of
coloured glazes.

Charles
James Mason, the third son of Miles Mason had works at Lane Delph
and at Heron Cross, his home was Heron Cottage at the Heron Cross /
Blurton Road cross roads.
In 1813, Charles James Mason received a patent for his “ironstone
china.” This hardened earthenware proved useful in the production of
daily china. Because of its exceptional durability, ironstone became the
most successful product sold by the Mason's Minerva Works factory. Soon
after the creation of ironstone, the Masons’ name became popular
throughout England and Europe.

Whieldon's Grove
c.1845the home of the famous potter Thomas Whieldon (1719-95) was at
the bottom of Whieldon Road (Whieldon Old Road)
the road from Stoke to Longton crosses the left hand side of the picture
the two parallel lines running middle left to right shows the line of the
proposed railway